PENDLETON — After a three-and-a-half-hour meeting listening to proposals and remonstrators, it took the Ingalls Board of Zoning Appeals just minutes to make its decision.
By a vote of 5-0, the Ingalls BZA said no to Newco Metals.
The company, located off State Road 13 near I-69, was seeking a land use variance for the development of Element 13, which according to representatives of the scrapyard would be a casthouse or remelter for recycling aluminum.
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Alex Intermill, an attorney representing Newco, told the board and the nearly 400 people in attendance at John Lord Gym at Maple Ridge Elementary School, that Element 13 “is not a smelter.”
“Refining and smelting are not the same thing,” Intermill told the board.
Leading up to Monday evening’s meeting, protests of the development had grown, with people expressing concern about health and emission risks and the potential impact on property values.
A website called Pendleton/Ingalls Alliance for Clean Air was created. Concerned citizens went to Pendleton and Lapel town council meetings urging both boards to send the Ingalls BZA letters opposing the variance.
Signs had been posted across the street from Newco Metals and at the elementary school that stated, “No to Newco Element 13.” It included a picture of smoke stacks in a red circle with a line through it. Many in attendance Monday wore red shirts with the sign’s logo.
“Basically, our children, that was my concern,” BZA president Melanie Johnson said. “My concerns are for children and grandchildren. I have eight grandkids and four great-grandkids. I’m just very concerned for them. Nothing convinced me that it was going to be safe.”
Johnson, David Ittenbach, Jill Golden, Gary Wimmer and Cherilynn Eby comprise the five-member board.
Neil Stevenson, principal planner for the Madison County Council of Governments, was an adviser to the board and recommended the proposal be denied. By law, Stevenson said, the proposal had not met five criteria to be approved.
Criteria included:
• The approval will not be injurious to the public health, safety, morals and general welfare of the community;
• The use and value of the area adjacent to the property included in the variance will not be affected in a substantially adverse manner;
• The need of variance arises from some condition peculiar to the property involved;
• The strict application of the terms of the zoning ordinance will constitute an unnecessary hardship if applied to the property for which the variance is sought; and
• The approval does not interfere substantially with the comprehensive plan.
Intermill spoke for nearly 30 minutes and then answered questions from the board.
Gregg Morelock, attorney for the town of Ingalls, served as the meeting’s moderator. He warned the large crowd — mostly made up of area residents opposed to the proposal — on a couple of occasions to refrain from outbursts.
Twice during Intermill’s lengthy proposal — Morelock had initially told Newco representation and remonstrators they would have 10 minutes each — members of the crowd yelled, “Filibuster!”
There were a couple of instances of loud cheering during testimony of remonstrators.
Remonstrators were given equal time. Twelve different representatives approached the podium with their concerns of the development.
James Rybarczyk, an analytical environmental chemist and professor at Ball State University, who also spoke at a recent Pendleton Town Council meeting about the proposed project, told the board, “I reviewed the IDEM permit for the proposed smelter in Muncie and provided the data that ended up stopping it. That was bad science and, in my opinion, this variance is worse.”
Stan Evans, who owns the property across from Newco and his attorney Greg Zubek also spoke against the variance.
“I am not opposed to development, but we don’t think this is it,” Evans said.
Lisa Wickliff, who said she is a concerned mom of the community, was emotional in her testimony. She has two young children, twin daughters who were born prematurely and are considered high risks for developing allergies, asthma and emphysema.
“I’m scared right now for my children. We are talking about dust particles going in the air. If she breaths those in, she already has breathing issues. She breathes those particles in and she’s going to end up back in the intensive care unit.
“I’m begging you to say, No.”
Area government officials also spoke in opposition of the plant, including Greene Township trustee Gary Valentine, Pendleton Town council member Chet Babb, Pendleton Plan Commission member Brad Ballentine and Lapel Plan Commission president Beth Honarmandian.
“This could be the first step or the last step. (Newco has) 30 days to appeal the decision,” Morelock said.
Chris and Mike Rasmussen are co-owners of Newco Metals, which has been in business for 33 years.
“Very disappointing,” Chris Rasmussen, who had no comment on whether they’d appeal, said. “We’ll move on to an area that will accept us. It was just convenient for us to be next door to our current operation that has been there for 33 years.”
Chris Rasmussen said he was also disappointed that concerned community members he invited to come to their offices to talk about concerns and issues did not take him up on his offer.
“It’s unfortunate that the folks listened to false propaganda that was perpetuated by the Ball State junior professor,” Mike Rasmussen added.